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Strangely, Michigan’s Jabrill Peppers agrees with CFP committee’s final rankings
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Head-to-head matchups are important.
So it’s understandable that, when the final College Football rankings were released on Sunday, Michigan fans were still a little irritated after Penn State leapfrogged the Wolverines for the No. 5 spot after claiming the B1G title in Indianapolis on Saturday. Earlier this season, the maize-and-blue handled the Nittany Lions with ease, winning 49-10.
Michigan’s do-it-all man Jabrill Peppers was not one of those who protested the committee’s decision.
On Sunday, B1G’s Defensive Player of the Year sent out a slew of tweets complementing Penn State on its B1G title and explaining why he understands the committee’s final rankings:
We take care of business, we're in. We don't, we're not..& we didn't. Can't knock the teams that did.
— JP5 (@JabrillPeppers) December 4, 2016
Even though we beat PSU handedly, We were their last lost, early in the season. They didn't lose again, beat OSU and Iowa & won the Ship.
— JP5 (@JabrillPeppers) December 4, 2016
I think the committee knows we are better, they just can't knock what they've turned their season into. It's a slippery slope.
— JP5 (@JabrillPeppers) December 4, 2016
Thus.. Us being #6 behind PSU makes sense.
— JP5 (@JabrillPeppers) December 4, 2016
Shoutout to the Guys at PSU! Y'all did y'all thing, hold it down in the Rose!
— JP5 (@JabrillPeppers) December 4, 2016
Michigan did have everything in front of them before the November matchup with Iowa and a win over either the Hawkeyes or Ohio State would’ve helped the Wolverines take the B1G East crown and likely earn a bid to the College Football Playoff.
It was an easy decision for the committee to rank Penn State ahead of Michigan in the final rankings despite the head-to-head, as Penn State was headed to the Rose Bowl with the B1G title, anyway.
The Wolverines (10-2) earned a pretty good bowl berth and will play Florida State in the Orange Bowl.
Peppers finished his electric sophomore campaign with 71 tackles including 15 stops for a loss and an interception. He was also one of the conference’s most-feared punt returners, fielding 21 punts and picking up 310 yards and a TD on special teams.
Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB